Media Release:

Eddie Aikau, the inspiring Hawaiian hero and big wave surf legend who was lost at sea in 1978, dared to “go” for the biggest waves, the bravest ocean rescues, and the 2,500-mile trans-Pacific voyage of the sailing canoe Hōkūle‘a. Today two Hawai‘i Island-based companies have partnered to share Eddie’s story and spirit in a new, up-and-coming classic: the Eddie Aikau Restaurant & Surf Museum, opening this summer at Kings’ Shops in Waikoloa Beach Resort.

Brandon Lee, Ryan Lee and Keoni Regidor, the Honoka‘a Brothers, along with Executive Chef Scott Lutey, are Hawai‘i born and raised, surfers, watermen, enthusiastic young restaurateurs and chefs to watch. With Hawaiian Cahuilla, Inc., owned by Waimea residents Linda Gillette and husband Solomon Aikau, Eddie’s brother, they are working to assemble the ultimate collection of memorabilia, surf posters, awards, pictures, surfboards, videos and much more for the restaurant’s surf museum.

A July 3rd grand opening promises to be a big splash—with special appearances by celebrity pro surfers, top-of-the-charts Hawaiian bands, prizes, specials and surprises. With renovations under way now and exciting plans for the future, “Eddie’s” will debut during Resort-wide Independence Day festivities, including the annual Rubber Duckie Race for Cerebral Palsy, this year themed “Koloa Would Go,” the following day.

For more information, about the Eddie Aikau Restaurant & Surf Museum visit EddieAikauRestaurants.com (coming soon) and find them on Facebook.

About the restaurant

With the grand opening slated for July 3rd, the Eddie Aikau Restaurant & Surf Museum will be open for lunch and dinner, with live music Thursday through Saturday nights. Located in the Kings’ Shops at Waikoloa Beach Resort on the Big Island of Hawai‘i, the two-story restaurant with indoor-outdoor lakeside seating, has been transformed into a hip yet classic 1960’s-style surf retreat/plantation house. Its ʻōhiʻa posts, earth tone interiors, “aloha” fabrics and a lifetime collection of surf memorabilia and mementos of Eddie’s life and surf career, capture the warm nature of an island home, inviting everyone to come in, share a meal and “talk story.”

About the chef

Winner of multiple Hale ‘Aina Awards, Chef Scott Lutey is creating a new “Contemporary Hawaiian Cuisine” for “Eddie’s” restaurant, based on his personal mana’o (thought energy) about food. “We focus on enhancing the natural flavor of the product, keeping up with food trends, cooking techniques and flavors in Hawaii and around the world—with simple elegance,” says Lutey. Spotlighting excellence in the sustainable local foods that Eddie would have loved, Chef Lutey is already reaching out to farmers, fishermen and ranchers for the best in Hawaii’s food products.

A waterman himself, Lutey is originally from Maui, and has made a name for himself on four islands, from First Hawaiian Bank’s Executive Dining Room in Honolulu, to the Sheraton Kauai and Beach House Restaurant, Grand Wailea Hotel and Spa on Maui, and Tommy Bahama’s restaurant in the Mauna Lani Resort here on Hawai‘i Island. Recipient of five Hale ‘Aina Awards and two ‘Ilima Awards, Chef Lutey has been a “Featured Chef” by James Beard and “Rising Star” by Zagat Survey Millennium Edition. He is a Grand Prize winner of the Angostura “World Class Taste,” and twice champion of the Sam Choy Poke contest.

About the owners

Hawaiian Cahuilla, Inc., comprised of Linda Gillette and husband Solomon Aikau, Eddie’s brother, partnered with Honoka‘a Brothers, LLC to create “The E. A. Restaurants,” a collaboration of restaurant expertise and a personal relationship with Eddie. Honoka‘a Brothers LLC is comprised of Brandon Lee, Ryan Lee and Keoni Regidor, who already operate two of the Big Island’s favorite recent restaurants: Pakini Grill in Waimea and Napua on the ocean at Kalahuipua‘a within Mauna Lani Resort. The Eddie Aikau Restaurant & Surf Museum at Kings’ Shops in Waikoloa Beach Resort will add a third. Everyone involved with the project has a deep personal commitment to the kuleana (responsibility) of sharing Eddie’s story.

About Eddie Aikau

Edward Ryon Makuahānai Aikau was born on Maui in 1946 and grew up on Oahu with his extended family, who tended an old Chinese graveyard in exchange for rent. He and his brothers dreamed of the day they could catch the monster waves of the North Shore, where few 1960’s surfers dared to go. Eddie Aikau not only mastered the challenge of Waimea Bay, he captured the attention and respect of the sport and helped spark a worldwide love affair with big wave surfing.

In the years to come, he would be hired as the North Shore’s first official life guard, and not a soul was lost to the sea during his seven years of service. No matter how dangerous the conditions, it became known that “Eddie would go.” By 1977, he had won the Duke Kahanamoku Classic, named for his personal hero, had his photo in Life magazine, and was ranked 12th in the surfing world.

Having satisfied his big wave goals, Eddie answered a personal calling to connect more deeply with his Hawaiian culture joining the Hawaiian voyaging canoe Hōkūle‘a. Hōkūle‘a set sail March 16, 1978, on what would be an ill-fated voyage from Hawai‘i to Tahiti. Capsized in rough seas, Eddie insisted upon paddling to Lāna‘i for help, some 19 miles away. Although the crew was later rescued, Eddie was never seen again.

His legacy is honored today through the world’s most famous big wave surf meet, The Quiksilver In Memory of Eddie Aikau, and The Eddie Aikau Foundation, established by the Aikau family in 2000, to support promising opportunities that reflect Eddie’s dreams through education, advocacy and philanthropy. www.EddieAikauFoundation.org.

For more information, about the Eddie Aikau Restaurant & Surf Museum visit EddieAikauRestaurants.com (coming soon) and find them on Facebook.